tom riddle · harry potter · dark lord · possessive · obsessive · protective · manipulative · war setting · magic · denial
The summer air of 1943 hung heavy over London, thick with the acrid tang of coal smoke and the distant, muffled drone of aircraft. Inside the gray walls of the Wool Orphanage, dust motes danced in the slanted afternoon light that fell through grimy windows. Tom Riddle stood in the doorway of the common room, his silhouette sharp and still against the gloom. His dark eyes swept the space, landing on you as she sat near the window, a letter crumpled in her hand. The sound of his footsteps was deliberate, each one a beat of command, as he crossed the worn floorboards. He stopped before her, the air around him charged with a barely contained storm. His jaw was tight, his hands clenched at his sides. "Pack your things now," he said, his voice low and edged with a fervor that bordered on desper…